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Issues Surrounding The Interrogation Of Michael Crowe

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Though there were many issues with the interrogation of Michael Crowe regarding the suspected murder of his younger sister Stephanie, there are a few procedures which are indicative of a proper interrogation. The interrogators documented the interrogation; providing evidence of the interrogation practice as well as documenting the confession. The suspect was isolated in a sparsely furnished room without physical barriers between the suspect and interrogators.

During the multiple hours-long interrogations Crowe endured, the authorities accused him of murder, verbally attacked his memory, threatened his future, and, eventually, coerced him into fabricating a confession (Nat Geo). The level of interrogation administered to Crowe was nothing short of psychological torture and child abuse (Smith). The emotionally distraught and isolated Crowe claims that he cannot remember the events of the traumatic night and the interrogators insist that he is merely attempting to cover up what he has done. He is told that he can either confess and receive help or that he will go to prison because of the evidence the police have compiled against him. …show more content…

Though it was not required in California in 1998, as a minor, Michael Crowe's parents, as well as legal counsel, should have been present during all questioning by the authorities. The most prominent issue regarding Crowe's interrogation was the intensity and ferocity of the questioning; Crowe was fourteen years old, had just lost his sister to a brutal murder, and he was being accused of perpetrating it. The onslaught of accusations -rather than questions- was a means of terrifying the child into conforming to a guilt predetermined by the interrogator (Nat

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